Jabe Mullins’ 3-pointer with 3.1 seconds remaining lifted Washington State to a 66-64 win over George Washington in the quarterfinals of the Diamond Head Classic on Thursday in Honolulu.
After the Colonials took a one-point lead on E.J. Clark’s free throw with 15 seconds left, Washington State’s TJ Bamba dribbled the ball off his foot near the top of the key before corralling it and finding Mullins on the left wing for the game-winning shot.
George Washington’s James Bishop IV had a 3-point attempt fail to hit the basket as time expired.
Washington State’s Mouhamed Gueye scored a game-high 21 points on 9-for-14 shooting to go along with 10 rebounds. Bamba added 17 points and seven rebounds.
Mullins, who went 2 of 4 from beyond the arc, finished with eight points and four assists.
The Cougars (5-6), who ended a two-game slide, shot 24 of 57 (42.1 percent) from the field, including 7 of 26 (26.9 percent) from 3-point range, but went a woeful 11 of 18 (61.1 percent) from the free-throw line. Washington State outrebounded the Colonials 39-26, including 13-4 on the offensive end.
George Washington (6-5), which has dropped three of its past four games, was led by Brendan Adams’ 17 points. Maximus Edwards added 10 points and a team-high eight rebounds, while Ricky Lindo Jr., Bishop and Hunter Dean added 10 points apiece.
The Colonials shot 27 of 55 (49.1 percent) from the field, including an abysmal 3 of 18 (16.7 percent) from beyond the arc.
Washington State will face the winner of the late Pepperdine-Hawaii game in the semifinals on Friday, with George Washington meeting the loser in the consolation bracket that day.
After trailing 46-40 with just under 12 minutes left, the Colonials pulled even on Dean’s jumper with 2:35 to go before Adams’ steal and dunk gave George Washington a 61-59 edge eight seconds later.
Washington State pulled even on Bamba’s two free throws with 2:03 left before Bishop’s floater gave the Colonials a 63-61 with 59 seconds to go.
Gueye tipped-in DJ Rodman’s miss to knot the score at 63 with 24 seconds remaining before Gueye fouled Clark, who split a pair of three throws with 15 seconds to go.
–Field Level Media